For twenty years now, the hottest action during the hottest months could be found in only one place—SummerSlam! The WWE?s signature event of the summer has seen a number of memorable championship bouts and grudge matches.

Movie Reviews

The Absolute Best of The "SummerSlam" Anthology

R.A. McKenzie | New York | 05/14/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Volume 3 of the "WWE SummerSlam Anthology" is easily the best of the bunch. Not only is it the most well-rounded package, but the five PPVs included are among the best of the entire "SummerSlam" Anthology, from 1988 all the way to 2008. The least of the events (the 2000 edition, IMO) is still a good card.

If you want the short version, skip to the end.If you're in for a long version, let's get to it!

*****1998*****Our first PPV of Volume 3 is a good one. The 1998 "SummerSlam" includes a handful of solid matches, while the rest is at least watchable. The show's two main events are among the best from the Attitude Era. The Rock and Triple H probably stole the show with their Ladder Match for the Intercontinental Title. Even today, this decade-old fight holds us incredibly well. The main event pitted The Undertaker against `Stone Cold' Steve Austin for the WWF Championship. In my opinion, this is the best match Taker & Austin had with each other. It's a wild frenzied brawl that shows how talented both men were, especially considering they had to follow a Ladder Match that had the crowd exhausted.

The rest of the card is pretty good. The opener features Val Venis challenging D'Lo Brown for the European Title, probably the first notable PPV appearance from either man. X-Pac and Jeff Jarrett had a solid Hair-vs-Hair contest, in which Howard Finkel had a minor role after Double J cut his hair days before the PPV.

Sable and Marc Mero continued their feud, with both picking a partner in mixed tag team action. The highlight is Sable revealing Edge to be the mystery partner, and both men worked well together, as did the ladies. Owen Hart and Ken Shamrock competed in a Lions Den Match, which is basically an octagonal cage similar to most MMA arenas. It was a unique and acceptable addition to the 1998 "SummerSlam".

I was disappointed that because of the storyline, Mankind was forced to defend the WWF Tag Team Titles against The New Age Outlaws in a No Disqualifications Match, because Kane no-showed the event. While it was commendable seeing the three men beat the crap out of each other, I would've rather seen Kane get involved in the match rather than just showing up at the end.

Volume 3 of the "SummerSlam" Antology is off to a good start, so be sure to check this 1998 event out.______________________________________________

*****1999*****The annual August event continues its streak of good PPVs with the 1999 edition.

Jesse "The Body" Ventura makes a guest appearance as the referee for the main event. The jist is that Ventura wouldn't show favoritism to any one of the wrestlers, and he wouldn't put up with any suspicious activity. Triple H and Mankind competed in a Triple Threat Match against "Stone Cold" Steve Austin for his WWF Championship, and it's one of the best PPV 3-way matches that I've seen. In addition to the quality of the action, I think many were surprised by who won the match.

My favorite match on the card is the Greenwich Street Fight, in which Test had to defeat Shane McMahon in order to be Stephanie McMahon's boyfriend. Keep in mind that this was pre-HHH/Steph. Without a doubt, this is my favorite match from Andrew "Test" Martin's career, and it's easily one of Shane's best. The violence is just excruciating to watch, and it's great fun when The Mean Street Posse gets involved.

There are some other good matches. D'Lo Brown puts both the Intercontinental and European Title on the line against Jeff Jarrett in the solid opener. The Tag Team Turmoil gauntlet is a good display of 6 teams, mainly how The Hardy Boyz and Edge/Christian got to show off their skills before their legendary Ladder Matches in the months to come. Perhaps the biggest surprise is how strong the Tag Team Titles Match is, as Undertaker & Big Show challenge Kane & X-Pac for the straps. Trust me, it's quite the enjoyable contest.

This card hits a rough hour around the 40-minute mark. Road Dogg & Chris Jericho confront each other with a pointless promo, followed by a poor Hardcore Title Match, an abysmal Women's Title Match, and a confusing Weapons Lions Den Match. Also, I think the Kiss-My-A$$ Match between Billy Gunn & The Rock is a total letdown, considering how much I enjoy both of their skills.

"SummerSlam `99" is another good card to spend 3 hours with. Although not as solid as the 1998 edition before it, it's enough of a success to warrant at least one viewing.______________________________________________

*****2000*****Although this may be the weakest of the bunch, "SummerSlam 2000" still has a handful of quality contests. My favorite match from 2000 and my favorite Ladder Match of all time would be the TLC Match between Edge & Christian (Tag Team champions), The Dudley Boyz, and The Hardy Boyz. Even though this modern showstopper is on the WWE's "Ladder Match" 3-disc set, and soon to be on the WWE's "Allied Powers" Tag Team collection, I figure you're stuck with this event anyway. Might as well enjoy it, right?

Another exceptional bout has Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit continue their on-and-off rivalry in a Two-Out-Of-Three Falls Match. I prefer some of their other WWF encounters from this same time period, but this one hasn't been released on any other WWE DVD yet. You'd be wise to give this solid technical display a watch.

The two marquee matches from "SummerSlam 2000" is where this one may fall flat for most people. The Undertaker and Kane turned their grudge match into nothing but a punch-kick-punch-kick brawl with a bogus finish. In short, it's easily the worst Taker/Kane encounter I've ever seen. And the main event almost became a disaster after Kurt Angle suffered a concussion early on, forcing the WWF Championship Triple Threat to just let The Rock and Triple H battle it out by themselves for almost the entire match. Unfortunately, Rock & HHH had squared off so many times in 2000 that the crowd wasn't into this one a whole lot. I personally thought Angle's concussion allowed for a neat finish, but some might not get into it.

The undercard is mostly forgettable. Road Dogg & X-Pac permanently end D-Generation X in their grudge match, which was a long time coming. The Hardcore Title Match is mostly famous for Steve Blackman knocking Shane McMahon for his very first TitanTron fall. It's still a horrifying moment, but the match is average. One amtch I particularly liked was Val Venis putting his Intercontinental Title on the line in a Tag Team Match, where he partned with Tirsh Stratus against Eddie Guerrero & Chyna. Even though Guerrero & Venis do most of the work, I thought the ladies did their parts well.

Overall, I think "SummerSlam 2000" achieves a passing grade, but only marginally so. If it weren't for the exhilarating TLC Match, this PPV would've been a decent-but-forgettable affair.______________________________________________

*****2001*****I really only have one big problem with this single DVD. It's very likely that a lot of "WW_" moments are gonna happen. The Fed wasn't the WW'E' yet, and the whole Invasion angle where WCW/ECW tried to take over the WWF was taking place. As a result, there may be some more audio editing than usual.

But other than that, this is another excellent PPV from start to finish. Every match delivers, except for a few that don't meet their full potential.

Tonight's main event featured The Rock returning to the WWF to challenge Booker T for his WCW Championship. The other main event showcased Kurt Angle in his first babyface run, trying to win the WWF Championship from WCW/ECW Alliance leader `Stone Cold' Steve Austin. Aside from Booker being made to look more foolish than in his WCW career, Rock & Booker had a good match to satisfyingly close the show. Austin and Angle, on the other hand, had an outstanding match. I usually hate title matches on PPV that end in disqualifications, but this time it made perfect sense. And Angle was rapidly becoming one of the most respected in the company only after two years. Definitely check this match out!

Perhaps the next best matches are the first two on the PPV: Edge challenging Lance Storm to bring the WWF Intercontinental Title back home, and a fast-paced fun 6-Man Tag Team match between the two factions. The Title-For-Title bout between X-Pac (WWF Light-Heavyweight champion) and Tajiri (WCW Cruiserweight champion) is also a good time, with a good dose of aerial spots.

"SummerSlam 2001" also has three matches that get the job done, but aren't nearly as good as they should've been. Most surprising is how a Ladder Match between Jeff Hardy and Rob Van Dam didn't reach the heights (forgive the pun) that their "Invasion" classic did, mostly due to some botched spots. In another grudge match, Chris Jericho and Rhyno also didn't quite click as well as you'd expect from athletes of their caliber. And the other Titles-For-Titles Match --- this one in a Steel Cage --- was basically Undertaker & Kane beating the tar out of DDP & Kanyon to win both the WWF and WCW Tag Team Championships. Again, these three matches are fine, but could've been much better.

But don't let that last paragraph worry you, because "SummerSlam 2001" is an exceptional event. 2001 was a very strong year for the WWF, and "SummerSlam" is among its finest moments.______________________________________________

*****2002*****What a great way to finish a five-disc set. My personal favorite of the "SummerSlam" cards is this 2002 edition. Even though two of its best matches are on other WWE DVDs, the entire card is watchable. The forgettable decent matches include Ric Flair versus Chris Jericho, Eddie Guerrero versus Edge, and a by-the-numbers Tag Team Titles Match (Christian & Lance Storm v. Booker T & Goldust). There's a solid "big man" contest between Test and recently-turned-babyface Undertaker.

But the best parts of this 2002 "SummerSlam" are four excellent matches, scattered throughout the card. The two that are available on other WWE DVDs are the opener between Kurt Angle and Rey Mysterio, and the Unsanctioned Street Fight between Triple H and Shawn Michaels, who competed in his first TV match in over 4 years. Both of these great matches are complemented by a strong technical match between Rob Van Dam ("RAW") and Chris Benoit (Intercontinental champion from "SmackDown") in an interpromotional contest.

The main event is what Michael Cole called, "The most anticipated event in `SummerSlam' history." At the time, he wasn't kidding. Brock Lesnar challenged The Rock for the Undisputed WWE Championship, and it's a damn shame we never got to see these two athletes mix it up again. But that only makes this modern classic more memorable. WWE hyped this one like crazy, and the charismatic Rock and physical specimen Brock Lesnar delivered big time. Most will say that HHH/HBK was the better match, but I prefer this main event by a slim margin.

If you can't get your hands on the WWE's original "SummerSlam 2002" DVD (it has some solid extras), then this is the only reason you need to buy this 5-disc set.______________________________________________

Let's recap:The 1998 event is a strong example of why most fans love the Attitude Era, with even the worst matches being worth your time.

The 1999 event is another good event from this 5-disc set, even though it hits a boring patch between the 0:40-1:40 time period.

My least favorite is the 2000 PPV, but it's still got some good matches on it to warrant at least one viewing. It's best match (The TLC Match) has been released on a few other WWE DVDs, but who cares, right?

Other than some "WWF" dubbing, the 2001 "SummerSlam" is sure to please most viewers. The influx of WCW & ECW talent into the WWF was a great treat for wrestling fans, and in a year full of high spots, this August 2001 event is among the best.

The 2002 "SummerSlam" is hands down, my favorite of the entire 21-event Anthology. Its best matches are scattered throughout the card, and its weakest matches are still a fun time.

Even though you're missing out on some nice DVD Extras from the 1999-2002 releases, the PPVs are well worth your time. This is a strong 5-disc package. If you're a collector, then go ahead and try to hunt down the original WWF/WWE discs. But if you just want the PPVs, then buy this immediately!"